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Theodore Roosevelt
Theodore "Teddy" Roosevelt, Junior, was an American statesman and writer who, when our campaign begins, was serving as the 25th Vice President of the United States of America. Roosevelt also served as the 33rd Governor of New York from 1899 to 1900 Early Life Roosevelt was born in New York City on October 27, 1858, to businessman and philanthropist Theodore Roosevelt, Sr. and socialite Martha Stewart Bulloch. Much of Roosevelt's young life was defined by sickness, particularly his crippling asthma. During the night, he would suffer asthma attacks, yet remained energetic and mysteriously inquisitive. After purchasing the head of a dead seal at a fish market with his brothers, Roosevelt started what he called the "Roosevelt Museum Of Natural History". This began his lifelong interest in zoology and would shape his future as an outdoorsman. While hiking in the alps with his father in 1872, Roosevelt discovered that physical exercise helped remedy the effects of his asthma, and would keep a rigorous exercise regiment for the remainder of his life. On his 22nd birthday in 1880, Roosevelt married socialite Alice Hathaway Lee. Their daughter, Alice Lee Roosevelt, was born on February 12, 1884. Two days after giving birth, Roosevelt's wife died due to an undiagnosed case of kidney failure (called Bright's disease at the time), which had been masked by the pregnancy. In his diary, Roosevelt wrote a large 'X' on the page and then, "The light has gone out of my life." His mother, Mittie, had died of typhoid fever eleven hours earlier at 3:00 a.m., in the same house. Distraught, Roosevelt left baby Alice in the care of his sister Bamie in New York City while he grieved. He assumed custody of his daughter when she was three. Early political career Roosevelt was a member of the New York State Assembly from 1882 to 1884. During this time, he gained a reputation for being hard on corruption, which gained him some notoriety in the state. During his time on the State Assembly, he penned more bills than anybody else. In the Presidential Election of 1884, Roosevelt threw his support behind Senator George Edmunds of Vermont. After Edmunds failed to get the Republican nomination, Roosevelt temporarily retired from politics. Life as a cowboy Following the 1884 election, Roosevelt moved out west and took up work as a ranch hand in North Dakota, eventually building and owning his own ranch, called Elkhorn. During his time in North Dakota, Roosevelt learned to hunt, rope, and ride, and began his career as an author. By 1886, Roosevelt had published three books; Hunting Trips of a Ranchman, Ranch Life and the Hunting-Trail, and The Wilderness Hunter. '' During the brutal winter of 1886-1887, Roosevelt lost most of his cattle and some $80,000. He was forced to sell the ranch and return to New York. Further political career After returning to New York in 1887, Roosevelt ran for mayor of New York City on the Republican platform. Though he ultimately lost, this served to get him back into the public spotlight with his new rough-and-tumble Wild West demeanor. After the mayoral campaign, Roosevelt published his most famous book, ''The Winning Of The West, which was a commercial and critical success. In the 1888 Election, Roosevelt campaigned hard for Benjamin Harrison, who, once elected, appointed Roosevelt to the United States Civil Services Convention. Despite campaigning heavily again for Harrison in the 1892 election, the winner, Grover Cleveland, reappointed him to his post. In 1894, Roosevelt was approached about running for mayor of New York City again. He declined, but later regretted it and moved back to New York. Upon his return, he was appointed as a commissioner of the New York Police Department. During his tenure, he worked hard to guarantee fair treatment of New York's poor immigrant class by police, and often walked patrol-men's beats to supervise them directly. In the 1896 election, Roosevelt backed Republican William McKinley, who ultimately won the election. McKinley appointed Roosevelt to the position of Assistant Secretary of the Navy, and was present for the declaration of the Spanish-American War. Once war was declared, Roosevelt gave up his post and formed and rode with the First US Volunteer Cavalry Regiment, also known as the Rough Riders. Trained in San Antonio, the Rough Riders were critical in the liberation of Cuba and earned Roosevelt a name as a war hero. When the Rough Riders moved to Montauk, New York after the Spanish-American War, Roosevelt was approached and convinced to run for Governor of New York. In 1898, Roosevelt won the New York Gubernatorial Election by less than 1 percent and became the Governor of New York. As governor, Roosevelt gained a reputation of being a middle class peoples' governor, holding press conferences twice a day to keep the public informed and appearing at a number of social functions. Following the death of the vice president by heart attack, Roosevelt was approached about running alongside President McKinley in the 1900 election. Though he declined the offer and was ultimately told by McKinley's staff that he was not being seriously considered, Roosevelt's name was circulated in the media as a potential new Vice President, and at the 1900 Republican National Convention, Roosevelt conceded that if the Convention named him Vice President then he would give up his post as Governor of New York. Sure enough, the Convention nominated him unanimously, and his name was put on the ticket for Vice President in 1900. When McKinley won re-election in 1900, Roosevelt began his tenure as Vice President of the United States. During this time, he would take any long weekend or vacation he could get to either return to his family in New York City, or his newly re-purchased ranch in North Dakota. This is where our campaign catches up with him.